Eligible job seekers can get a bonus of up to $2500 by signing up for fruit picking. The Seasonal Harvest Sign-on Bonus will be provided in two payments, with $810 paid after two weeks of work and a further $1620 paid after an additional six weeks of work.
Growers have been urging the Victorian Government for six months to abandon attempts to win over local labour and instead concentrate on facilitating Pacific island workers.
The government has adopted a scheme to arrange for up to 1500 Pacific island workers to be quarantined in Tasmania before their arrival in Victoria, but it was only announced on January 22 and the workers have yet to arrive.
The government is proposing to charge growers $2000 per worker to defray the costs of the scheme.
VFF horticulture group chairman Nathan Free said the industry had been unable to attract local workers for decades and he didn't see the latest scheme as being effective.
He said the incentive should be based around compensation for protective equipment and tools, or vouchers for food.
Mr Free said the $2000 charge for workers under the Pacific islander scheme was a reasonable figure, but the program was likely to be too late.
“The government has really missed the cut on this,” he said.
“We saw this issue coming 12 months ago. Why has it taken so long to get a band-aid program, let alone work towards a solution?”
Goulburn Valley grower Peter Hall described the government's response to the labour shortage as piece-meal, ad hoc and a "dog's breakfast".
Mr Hall said the federal relocation scheme intended to encourage local workers to the region had not been successful and it was difficult to see how this state scheme would produce sufficient numbers of workers.
He said the pear harvest was already well under way and there was no sign of the promised Pacific islander scheme participants.
As for the $2000 cost, he said with such little time remaining for the season, the figure would have to be amortised over a shorter period, meaning the cost could be hundreds of dollars for just a few weeks’ work.
To be eligible for the bonus workers need to complete at least 10 days’ work within a one-month period to receive the first bonus and at least another 30 days within a three-month period for the additional payment.
To maximise take-up of the sign-on bonus, industry groups that support growers in priority harvest regions will receive funding for additional staff and resources through a new $1 million Seasonal Workforce Industry Support grant program.
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